Slime Soul (Tensura x Bleach Crossover) (Patreon)

Chapter 15: Hidden Hand

Ignoring almost everyone as they went to greet Ichigo, I silently signaled Nelliel with my eyes to follow me as I walked a short distance away, with her falling in step behind me.

I also ignored the many eyes I felt on our backs, coming from all of the Captains except Byakuya, who had gone with his sister to greet the Substitute Shinigami.

Once we were far enough away, I turned to face Nelliel, my expression serious.

“Nel, I’m about to ask something of you that you might disagree with,” I said immediately. “But please, hear me out first.”

Nelliel frowned slightly.

“You’re going to ask me to stay behind, aren’t you?” she asked softly. A flicker of betrayal and disappointment crossed her eyes before vanishing, replaced by a carefully blank expression.

I winced at the look but pushed forward anyway.

“Yes,” I admitted. “I want you to stay behind with your Fracción. Ichigo’s friends most likely won’t be coming with us, and they’ll need someone strong to protect them while we deal with Aizen.”

“I see,” Nelliel murmured quietly, her eyes still tinged with sadness.

Letting out a silent sigh, I activated Thought Communication, speaking directly into her mind.

“Nel, please listen to me.”

Her eyes widened slightly at the sound of my voice inside her head, but thankfully she didn’t outwardly react.

“Caius? How are you doing this?” she asked, wonder replacing some of the earlier hurt, much to my relief.

“It’s a special ability of mine. That’s not important right now,” I replied. “The real reason I want you to stay behind is because I don’t know when your evolution will begin.”

Her expression sharpened. “…My evolution? What do you mean?”

“Do you remember how Pesche and Dondochakka both lost consciousness after I named them, and again when I was evolving?” I asked.

Her eyes shone with understanding. “You mean… that could happen to me too?”

“Yes, it will.” I said firmly. “And I can’t bring you into a war knowing you could collapse at any moment and be left vulnerable. Especially knowing the enemy.”

My tone softened.

“You were the first friend I made in this new life, Nel,” I continued. “I’d be a terrible friend if I let you walk into a battlefield knowing both sides might target you, and knowing I could lose you. So please… for me, stay here.”

Her eyes grew glossy, a blush creeping onto her cheeks.

“…Okay,” she sniffed quietly. “I’ll stay.”

Then, to my surprise, she suddenly pulled me into a quick hug. I felt something soft brush my cheek before she stepped back, her blush deepening as she refused to meet my eyes.

“You’re really special to me too, Caius.” she murmured.

Without another word, she abruptly turned and walked away toward her subordinates.

“I-I’ll let Pesche and Dondochakka know we’re staying here,” she added quickly, still refusing to look back at me.

Thankfully, our conversation had only taken a couple of seconds. Otherwise, it might have looked strange to anyone watching us that we had stayed silent for too long.

Nelliel also left before I could tell her one very important detail about her evolution. Already being an Arrancar, and a Vasto Lorde–level one at that, I honestly had no idea what she might evolve into.

All I knew was that she would experience a massive jump in power, especially since Raphael would be overseeing the process. For all I knew, Nelliel could end up becoming a completely new race, something never seen before.

With her subordinates it was different; they didn’t have the same potential, and most of the energy from their naming had gone into restoring their original forms after their masks were ripped off, with only a modest boost granted afterward.

‘Oh well. I guess it’ll be a nice surprise for me later,’ I thought as I walked back toward where the others were already waiting.

As I did, I heard Mayuri’s mocking voice from the side.

“Fascinating~ To think Arrancar could care for one another just like humans do. Kuhuhuhu. I’ll make sure to place you both next to each other when I capture you.”

He wore a disturbing smile, while the homunculus—no, the Enhanced Artificial Soul as it was called here, Nemu—watched me silently from his side.

‘Must not murder the clown. Must not murder the clown,’ I repeated internally like a mantra.

Ignoring the psychopath entirely, I walked past him without so much as a backward glance and rejoined the group.

“Is everyone ready?” I called out, drawing their attention.

Coming to a stop, I glanced to the side, seeing Orihime, Uryu, and Sado standing with Nelliel and her subordinates. “I’m assuming your friends won’t be tagging along with us?” I asked.

“No. They’ll be staying behind,” Ichigo answered, taking the lead. He gave his friends an apologetic look before turning back to me. “It’ll be safer for them here. Anyway, we’re ready, Caius. Can you still open a portal to the World of the Living?”

“Smart choice,” I said with a small nod. “And yes, I can, I just need to see your memories of where we will be traveling to so I can open a Garganta.”

Ichigo nodded without hesitation as he quickly approached me not even questioning how I was going to do such a thing and placing his trust in me.

Well aware of the many eyes on me, I walked up to him before placing my hand on his shoulder. “Alright, now concentrate on the place and I’ll do the rest.” I instructed.

Ichigo furrowed his brow for a moment and did as he was told and a moment later using a combination of my abilities, I was able to get a clear picture of my mind of Karakura Town.

Letting go of him, I turned around and snapped my fingers.

A moment later, a Garganta tore open in front of us. I glanced back with a faint grin. “One Garganta, just like you ordered”

“Let’s get going already!” Kenpachi shouted, unexpectedly leaping straight into the dimensional rift with Yachiru riding along, his grin wide. “This time I won’t let you hog all the good fights!”

With a collective sigh, those familiar with Kenpachi’s personality shook their heads and followed after him. Soon, only myself, those staying behind, and Mayuri with Nemu remained.

“You’re not going?” I asked flatly, finally turning to address him as I stood at the edge of the Garganta.

He scoffed. “As if I would trust the work of a test subject,” he sneered. “I can open my own Garganta just fine. I’ll be staying behind a little longer, I have more… exploring to do.”

His eyes gleamed with perverse interest as they briefly lingered on Nelliel and her subordinates.

My eyes narrowed dangerously as I loosened the tight restraint I had placed on my spiritual pressure, careful not to release my Demon Lord’s Haki in front of the scientist, but making my warning unmistakable.

I admit I was a bit surprised by what happened next. This was the first time I had fully unleashed my spiritual pressure. I should have realized that after devouring so many Espada, the result wouldn’t be pretty, but Mayuri’s words had struck a nerve, so you could forgive my lapse in judgment.

Immediately, everyone present—including Ichigo’s friends, Nelliel, and her subordinates—was forced to their hands and knees as my pressure slammed down on them.

Mayuri was especially caught off guard. A brief flash of panic crossed his face, his eyes widening as he struggled just to lift his head. My power was focused almost entirely on him. Beside him, Nemu had already collapsed, foam spilling from her mouth as she lost consciousness.

Realizing what I had done, I immediately reined my power back in.

The pressure vanished as suddenly as it had appeared, allowing everyone to breathe again. Still, all of them, except Nelliel and her subordinates, stared at me in naked shock.

Pointing a finger at the clown, my expression flat and cold, I gave him his first, and only, warning.

“Mayuri Kurotsuchi,” I said evenly, “harm any of them, and I will return the favor tenfold.”

Then I turned to the others, who were still recovering from my brief lapse in control. I offered them a small apologetic smile, one that didn’t quite reach my eyes.

“Sorry about that, everyone,” I said casually. “Anyway, take care of yourselves and hang tight. This war will be over before you know it.”

With that, I stepped into the Garganta, keeping an eye on Mayuri through Magic Sense as it began to close.

The man was glaring at my back, his face twisted with fury, when the rift finally sealed shut.

Turning my focus forward, I picked up speed, using reishi to form proper footing as I caught up to the others.

‘Raphael,’ I thought, ‘remind me to thoroughly check them once this mess is over. I wouldn’t put it past that bastard to plant surveillance bugs on them.’

“Noted, Master,” Raphael replied calmly and without a hint of remorse. “I also recommend killing him in the future. Based on extensive calculations, the probability of Mayuri Kurotsuchi becoming a problem for you is extremely high.”

‘What do you know,’ I thought dryly. ‘Great minds think alike.’

Shaking those thoughts aside, I rejoined the group. Only Byakuya and Unohana seemed to notice my arrival, with the Fourth Division Captain trailing slightly behind.

She fell into step beside me.

“If I may ask, Caius-san,” Unohana said calmly as we ran, “what happened back there? I felt your spiritual pressure spike for a moment.”

I didn’t bother to look at her and just kept running.

“Just giving your fellow Captain some advice,” I replied simply.

Seeing that I wasn’t going to elaborate any further, Unohana let the matter drop, and we continued on in silence.

In only moments, we would be joining the main battlefield.

‘I just hope Barragan is still alive,’ I thought idly. ‘It would be a shame to lose his ability. Especially since this would be the perfect opportunity to acquire it.’

=====

Inside the Garganta

While we traveled through the Garganta, the others discussed the nature of Aizen’s Zanpakutō and its ability of complete hypnosis. Just as in canon, it was decided that Ichigo must avoid witnessing its release at all costs, since he was one of the very few immune to its influence.

The only other person who shared that immunity was me.

It was hard not to notice that most of them, aside from Ichigo, Rukia, and perhaps Renji, didn’t fully trust me enough to place that responsibility in my hands. I only caught fragments of the conversation due to my proximity.

“We will do our best to protect you, Kurosaki-san,” Unohana said with a small bow as she ran alongside the others. “So please… defeat Sōsuke Aizen.”

Ichigo’s expression hardened with determination as he nodded. “Of course. You don’t even have to ask.”

He didn’t remember that I was also unaffected by Kyōka Suigetsu, or perhaps didn’t think of it at the moment. Either way, no one asked me for help.

After that declaration, the remainder of our journey passed in silence as everyone mentally prepared for what awaited us.

Before long, a faint light appeared ahead, our signal that the exit was close. One by one, expressions sharpened and game faces settled in.

The real battle was about to begin.

=====

Karakura Town — World of the Living

Crossing into the World of the Living, we came to a stop in midair and immediately took in our surroundings.

My gaze zeroed in on the strongest Hollow signatures present, and I let out a silent sigh of relief when I realized they were all still alive, for now.

‘Though that might not stay true for long, with the Visored already here,’ I thought as my eyes found the group of eight already engaged in their respective battles.

Love and Rose were backing up Kyōraku against Starrk.

Lisa and Hiyori had joined Tōshirō.

Kensei and Mashiro were clashing with Wonderweiss.

Hachigen joined alongside Soi Fon and her fat lieutenant, Ōmaeda, against Barragan.

And finally, Shinji stood face-to-face with Aizen himself.

Satisfied that my plans hadn’t been derailed, my gaze drifted to Aizen. He was now looking at us, specifically at Ichigo and me, with an amused expression, effortlessly holding back Shinji’s sword swing with a single hand.

‘Raphael,’ I thought calmly, never breaking eye contact, ‘help me hide my presence from everyone. For our plans to work, I need to fade into the background for a while.’

“…Done,” Raphael replied a moment later.

I didn’t need confirmation. I saw it immediately, Aizen’s amused smile vanished, replaced by a flicker of surprise as his gaze sharpened, clearly unable to sense me any longer.

Not bothering to linger, I teleported away, reverting to my slime form to make myself even less noticeable due to my size. Before leaving entirely, I cast one final look at Ichigo’s back.

‘Don’t let me down, Ichigo,’ I thought quietly. ‘I need you alive long enough to at least weaken Aizen.’

=====

With Ichigo’s Group

After quickly discussing their plans now that they understood the current situation, something Ichigo was genuinely thankful for, he felt more at ease. With the battle progressing smoothly, he no longer had to worry about the safety of his family.

He watched as his allies split off, each choosing a battle to support. The only exceptions were Kenpachi, who flatly refused to work with a partner and charged straight toward Aizen, and Unohana, who would remain behind to provide healing.

Ichigo blinked.

Someone was missing.

“Caius?” he called out, glancing around and drawing Unohana’s attention before she departed. “Hey, where’d you go, dumbass?”

“…Now that you mention it,” Unohana murmured, scanning the area as well, “I don’t recall seeing Aurelius-san since our arrival.”

A faint frown crossed her face for just a second before smoothing out.

“I wouldn’t worry too much, Kurosaki-san,” she continued gently. “I’m sure Caius-san will reveal himself when the time is right. For now, I must attend to the wounded. Please don’t forget what we discussed.”

She offered Ichigo a pleasant smile before vanishing in a burst of Shunpō.

“Tch… why would he disappear all of a sudden?” Ichigo muttered, still confused by the mysterious slime’s sudden absence.

“And here I was hoping we could team up against Aizen,” he added quietly, rubbing the back of his neck. “Especially since he probably hasn’t seen his Zanpakutō either…”

He searched the battlefield for a few more seconds before shaking his head sharply.

“What the hell am I thinking?” he scolded himself. “Caius has already taken down multiple Espada, and he even had to stop me from going berserk. I can’t keep letting him fight my battles for me.”

Straightening, Ichigo focused his attention fully on the battlefield ahead.

His job was clear: keep Aizen in sight, and strike him down the moment an opening appeared. The fate of the World of the Living, and Soul Society, rested on it.

“Like Caius said…” Ichigo muttered, tightening his grip on Tensa Zangetsu. “Just gotta believe.”